Every exciting journey begins with a less-than-exciting packing list. I half-excitedly, half-anxiously recall packing my bags in preparation for the flight, uncertain of what lay ahead, and I cannot emphasise enough how much smoother the journey to Newcastle will be if you do some planning before you pack. Here’s a little guide to get you …
Category: Taking Care of You
Set up your life in Newcastle
As a fellow international student, I know how difficult it can be sorting out your life admin in Australia. So, let’s get you prepared for your life ahead in the ‘land down under’! University of Newcastle’s International Engagement Manager, Lauren Miles, suggests three simple tasks to help facilitate your transition to living in Newcastle: Activate …
Find your tribe
Wanting to make friends upon arrival, but not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got your sorted! With expertise from the University of Newcastle’s International Engagement Manager, Lauren Miles, we discuss finding a connection to your roots and how to immerse yourself in the colourful culture of Newcastle, the University and beyond. The main …
International Students: Getting to UON
I bet you’ve done a ton of research on your future home at the University of Newcastle, but do you know how to actually get here? With assistance from the UON Global International Student Engagement Manager, Lauren Miles, I will take you through your first steps as an International student arriving on Australian soil, to …
Your Support Services Checklist
Coming to a new country has its challenges. If studying alone isn’t enough to handle (!), you also have to know information like where to find things around campus, public transport, finding somewhere to live, building new friendships, perhaps learning a new language, and managing your finances (just to name a few), all the while …
Navigating Addiction: Nangs
Beyond decorative pieces at dorm room parties, balloons have now found themselves as a means to deliver a brief high in the form of a gas. This gas is nitrous oxide, or what a uni student may refer to as nangs. Nitrous oxide is a gas that is widely used as a medical sedative. It …
Exercise to Excel: 5 Tips to Improve Your Exam Performance
Our bodies were built for mobility! Not desk-bound modality! And UON’s very own Professor David Lubans would agree wholeheartedly. Composed and strong of posture, David very much walks the talk. Starting off as a passionate physical education teacher with a knack for Rugby League, he has now established himself as a researcher dedicated to promoting …
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How to get your diet sorted for exams
Exam time is easily one of the most stressful times of the semester. Between trying to balance study with everything else happening at this time of year, sometimes our diets can suffer. Whether we’re snacking on whatever we can find at Pinkies during a cram session or eating takeout because we don’t have time to …
5 podcasts you NEED to be listening to
The student year is nearly over for many of us, just a few more weeks left to go! Life at the moment is all about multi-tasking, so why not make that a little bit more enjoyable? Whether you need something to help you or amp you up, or just something to listen to while you’re …
How to make the most of your ‘fake break’
Nothing feels better than waking up knowing you have two weeks of sweet, sweet freedom. No classes. No lectures. No battling it out for a park. In previous weeks you would have to set your alarm for 7am. Sit in gridlock. Stay up way too late trying to complete readings. Foregoing nights out at King …
It’s the end of the world as we know it (Except it probably isn’t)
His palms are sweaty, eyes weak, books are heavy There’s coffee on his sweater already, last-minute study He’s nervous, but on the surface he (doesn’t) look calm and ready To ace exams, but he keeps on forgettin’ What he wrote down, the writing time has started now He opens the paper, but the words won’t …
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Navigating Addiction: Cigarettes & Vaping
Apart from the mix of accents and frostbite-y cold, my ‘culture shock’ while on Exchange in Manchester last year, consisted of the strong smoking-culture amongst its students. It appeared to be a habit everyone inherited out of high school (or college, rather) – something less common in my experience studying in Sydney and Newcastle. The …